Why, you ask?
The agent was so kind in her rejection. She could have simply written "No thank you" but she didn't. Her comments actually made me smile and I went about the rest of my day happy as can be. Sounds crazy, I know, but let me explain before you go off and call the crazy place on me.
She said:
I had a great imagination
She loved my premise
I'm a good writer
My dialogue was fine
My characters were well-crafted
My plot was well-conceived
And last but not least, she encouraged me to submit elsewhere because it held promise.
Now, that's SEVEN great comments said about *my* writing and *my* story and *my* characters. This came from a well-known and fairly popular agent from a huge literary group. I think I counted 14 agents! Impressive, to me anyways!
She simply said my manuscript wasn't for her. and then she wished me the best. Yes, I am sad she didn't want to read more, but I am so appreciative of her compliments. I can make it through the next agent inquiry because of her nice remarks. (Thank you, Ms. Agent)
Waiting for the other replies, shooting the query letter in the backside:)
Talynn
This is much how I felt after my first rejection. It actually gives one hope, weirdly. Good luck with your other submissions!
ReplyDeleteThat is awesome! Better than I got with my first rejection. Now you are one step closer to an acceptance.
ReplyDeleteThe positive feedback is indeed a good sign. Best of luck resubmitting!
ReplyDeleteYou are right to feel proud, this is a lovely positve letter that should give you confidence to continue your search for the perfect agent for your work.
ReplyDeleteAWESOME!
ReplyDeleteWhat great comments! That obviously means you are querying at the right time and not too early:) I've never gotten such detailed notes in a rejection. CONGRATULATIONS! Good luck. Keep us updated.
ReplyDelete-Jenna
Nice! Strong start.
ReplyDeleteVery nice rejection! I've gotten a few personalized rejections, and they're so much more encouraging than form rejections.
ReplyDeleteThat's really nice that the agent took the time to reply, rather than just responding with a form rejection. I'm sorry it wasn't for her, but good luck with your other submissions. :D
ReplyDeleteThat is a good rejection letter.
ReplyDeleteThat is awesome! You are that much closer to your dream agent. Conratulations!
ReplyDeleteUh... Make that congratulations.
ReplyDeleteGrat not rat.
ReplyDeleteThe first rejection letter is always the hardest... but the positive feedback definitely softens the blow! Just stopping by on a GUTGAA blog hop! Hang in there and remember the road to becoming a published author is paved in persistence... and a little bit of caffeine!
ReplyDeleteAren't those sort of letters great? I consider them a big step forward. ^_^
ReplyDeleteHey fellow GUTGAA participator. I'm sorry about the rejection, but like you said..you should be PUMPED about that letter! Those are all fantastic things I'd love to hear from an agent, even if they don't offer me representation. SO CONGRATULATIONS!
ReplyDeleteI see that you, like me, did not make it into the pitch polish contest. I just put mine up on my blog, and I'd love to get your feedback. Leave me some comments, and I'll be sure to check back and read yours!
Great attitude. Rejections can be so subjective, often that's simply the case that the agent may already have enough of a certain genre, or is simply not taking new work at that time. It's wonderful she gave you positive feedback. Keep submitting!
ReplyDeleteI admire your attitude too!! It takes a lot to dust yourself off and get back up again when there's those who can't even begin to see the light of day.. or the silver lining. You have courage, and confidence and you are much determined! Keep going and don't give up! Good luck on your next submission!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great attitude. And what a great rejection. It's always great to hear good things about our writing during this really harsh process. Best of luck to you. And nice to meet you. (Getting through GUTGAA a little late.)
ReplyDeleteOh, so sorry to hear about the rejection, but I would share your same optimism. The fact that you got feedback seems to be a positive step as there are so many that come back and are definitely form rejections. My latest rejection was similar in that it said the story was cute, but not for that agent. That was more feedback than I had received from any previous rejections, and either way I figure that if I at least have the rejection, I can move on. Oh boy, I'm Friday night babbling. Anyway- keep going and keep up that fabulous positive attitude. :)
ReplyDeleteGood luck with your query, that does sound encouraging!
ReplyDeleteHello there! What positive feedback you got. Next time, publication!! I learned about you on Jennifer Young's blog, Children's Writer. Nice to meet you. Much success!
ReplyDeleteWow. that's an awesome rejection. Very promising. I've done the rejection rounds and let me assure you that most of them aren't that personal, so the agent must have liked your work to take the time to do that instead of just sending a form rejection. Maybe she was just too busy to take a new project on, or had something similar already, etc...Keep going though. It sounds like you're definitely on the write path. I'm a new follower btw. I found you through the GUTGAA bloghop. I'd love it if you could come visit me. My blog is brand spanking new and in somewhat desperate need of followers. It's www.onemagicbeanbuyer.blogspot.com Good luck with GUTGAA and great blog!
ReplyDeleteSweet! All the rejections I've gotten so far were form rejections. Sounds like yours is better!
ReplyDeleteThat's a GREAT first rejection - really, I know , I've had lots. Alright to cheer you up (if you need it) I tagged you in the GUTGAA TAG YOU'RE IT! Game. Go to my blog for details, I couldn't figure out how to reach you other than commenting on this post... I couldn't even find your whole name.
ReplyDeletehttp://rhiannwynnnolet.blogspot.com/
This might sound weird, but congratulations with the first rejection letter. It took me about 30 or 40 rejections letters to get such a nice rejection letter, so well done. Keep sending your queries, you are off to a great start. Good Luck with the rest of your process.
ReplyDeleteI always love nice rejection letters rather than form rejections. They reinstate why I'm in the agent game. Thanks for sharing your story :)
ReplyDeleteThat is a great first rejection! I actually kept my first rejection because someday I will look back at it and see how far I've come. And my first rejection was not even addressed to me by name, not helpful at all. It's awesome she still really liked your story and characters! :)
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like you got a truly awesome rejection letter!
ReplyDeleteThis is WONDERFUL!!! I hope this gives you lots of encouragement!! I feel like congrats are in order. ;)
ReplyDeleteAs someone already posted, AWESOME! Great attitude, and so much detail, that is such a positive response.
ReplyDeleteJust posted my TAG! YOU'RE IT! on my blog, and I've tagged you.
ReplyDeletehttp://yolandarenee.blogspot.com
Have fun!
OOh! That is an encouraging sign. To help more, we are hosting a pitch contest over on http://pineapplelightning.blogspot.in/. Please do enter!
ReplyDeleteWow. You are very fortunate to have received personalized feedback -- it's pretty rare! Sounds like you have a winning query! Stop by my blog sometime and say "hi" :0)
ReplyDeletehttp://oregongirlabroad.blogspot.com
Super cool! I'd frame it if I were you. Seriously!
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry she passed on your book, but for a rejection, that's a super cool one. Glad you got some good feedback; it not only lessens the sting of the "no" but encourages you to press on. :-)
ReplyDeleteSome Dark Romantic
This is very strange for me, since, about one hour ago, I published on my blog a post about rejections...It's almost serendipitous to run into your post. Anyway..considering Agatha Christie was rejected by 14 publishers til she finally met someone interested...you have nothing to worry about. Keep submitting...:) Good luck.
ReplyDeleteCongrats on such a personal rejection letter!
ReplyDeleteI look at each rejection as one step closer to publication...but a *personalized* letter is like a giant leap :)
That's an amazing rejection. All my rejections were of the extremely discouraging 'dear author' variety. It's a huge thing for an agent to feel strongly enough about your work that she's willing to take the time to give that encouragement. Let that positivity carry you forward, because it's NO SMALL THING!
ReplyDeleteWow, that's a great rejection letter. :) It sounds like you are off to a fantastic start to your querying.
ReplyDeleteI know just how you feel! I've only had one rejection (because I've only ever submitted one sample, upon request), and it was a lovely rejection. Part of me was sad, but another part was completely thrilled by the amazing compliments this huge literary agent gave me in said rejection. So I can totally relate.
ReplyDeleteWe never like getting rejection letters, but personal ones are super nice. They give us the feedback we so desperately desire. Glad you got some of that!
ReplyDeleteThis happened to me often for my YA Fantasy. Lots of requests, all ending in 'this is a great story, with great writing but I just have difficulty selling Fantasy'.
So keep at it! It will happen :)
Wow that sounds like one great rejection letter. If I get lots of rejections, I hope mine are like yours. ;-)
ReplyDeleteWOW I really love that rejection you've gotten. Anything better than just a form letter is fantastic, at least they have truly done an effort in seeing if your work worked :)
ReplyDelete